Leave it to Opposite Day “progressives” to reverse the intent behind Virginia’s state motto.

In one of those occasional convergences that happen every so often, the American Civil Liberties Union is coming down on the right side of pending legislation by opposing a Virginia bill “that would define domestic terrorism and add it to its list of criminal charges,” the Daily Press reports.

The bill “raises ‘significant constitutional concerns,’ particularly with the First Amendment [and] is written in a way that could allow the state government to target minority communities who have ‘unpopular beliefs,’” the report explains. “Specifically, the power that the superintendent of Virginia State Police would hold in labeling groups as domestic terrorist groups — without those groups being notified in advance — is a concern.”

While ACLU’s concerns are valid, the “minority” group the bill is intended to target does not include people they are overly concerned about. Understanding that the legislation is a Democrat response to Charlottesville, it should come as no surprise that the intent is to take attention away from threats imported through “progressive” cultural and political “fundamental transformation” policies and point a finger and assumption of guilt toward the native-born.

Look at the two main shakers and movers behind the legislation: Delegate Marcia “Cia” Price and Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, both “progressive” anti-gun / pro-“immigration” Democrats. So naturally they have no problem limiting rights to freely assemble and associate based on an edict that “defines domestic terrorism as a violent or criminal act that aims to intimidate or instill fear in someone because of their race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation or disability, or to stop someone from pursuing their constitutional rights.”

That’s a pretty loose benchmark, especially since we see college “safe spaces” and after-event counseling for “snowflakes” overwrought because a “conservative” was allowed to speak on a college campus. What does it really take for such as these to claim intimidation and fear, and why should their neuroses—real or faked — have any bearing on the rights of free people? And this goes a step further: If you “knowingly provide resources” (donate a few bucks, drive members to a rally site, etc.?) to such a group, you could apparently be up for a Class 5 felony.

But wait, there’s more!

“Price’s bill would require the Virginia State Police superintendent to identify groups that meet the definition of a domestic terrorist organization and to list them annually in the Virginia Register of Regulations, which is a guiding document for state agencies,” the report elaborates. “The bill would require local police departments to report acts of domestic terrorism to the State Police, but those reports could be withheld from the public.”

What could go wrong, not only in giving police such powers to designate who’s who in “domestic terrorism,” but also in keeping the citizens they supposedly work for in the dark?

Does anyone have any doubts as to what these people are doing and why?

Curiously — maddeningly, some would maintain — many Virginians are asleep at the switch. As their state turns from red to blue, with an influx of newly-minted citizens leading the way, the Republicans in the House narrowly missed losing their majority by just one vote in a contest that then had to be decided by pulling a name out of a canister. Literally.

It’s not lost on “progressives” that this is happening in the state that is home to National Rifle Association headquarters. And it’s not lost on a few of us that the end game this enables will allow Democrats to pass whatever anti-gun legislation they wish and to appoint judges who will uphold those “laws.”

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David Codrea blogs at The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance (WarOnGuns.com), and is a field editor/columnist for GUNS Magazine. Named “Journalist of the Year” in 2011 by the Second Amendment Foundation for his groundbreaking work on the “Fast and Furious” ATF “gunwalking” scandal, he is a frequent event speaker and guest on national radio and television programs.

8 comments

Right ! We don’t need people redefining everything, people that use the term hate speech or hate crime to punish according to their ideologies. I’m proud to be a conservative Christian and don’t conform to the moral less society we are living in Thanks

Oath Keepers needs to get the truth out not just in Virgina,and not just this subject.Its time for Oath Keepers to move up to the next level hand pick a few good men and women to start making regular visits to places like fox.Tucker would be a good first choice very smart and fair.At first be prepared for him to think your 1st representative to be some kind of radical But after a few minutes Tucker will realize that this is not true and knowing him like I think I do .I Believe he will say that he misunderstood and will welcome your representative back for other visits and there you go .please remember Tucker is not O Reilly. Thanks from
The Desert rat from Apple Valley California.

If I understood David correctly, this bill would also permit Superintendent of State Police to declare the NRA to be a terrorist organization, and as such could arrest them all? Probably use asset forfeiture to bankrupt the organization by seizing all funds and that literally priceless collection of firearms. Oh, and to make them divulge the names and addresses of all members – who because they are members would also be considered terrorists. And let’s not forget that said classsification would be picked up by some Dem mole in D.C. and the next thing you know every Fusion Center in the nation will be disseminating names and addresses of the newly minted ‘terror suspects’ to the locals PD everywhere.

The NRA should consider having an alternate location in a solidly red state, and work up plans for turning that into the HQ, just in case this heinous bill succeeds.

If the citizens of any state, including Virginia, sit on their asses and do nothing but talk and bitch about it while they allow their governments to pass such vile unconstitutional laws, then they get what they deserve. If the NRA keeps its national headquarters in such a repulsive state as Virginia, then the NRA is part of the problem, not the solution.

I would have thought ;the patriot act should have encompassed ;all these federal policy makers safeguards ; i am fearful now that little by little the out of control federal government ; whom prints paper money like a counterfeiter ; to pay its foot soldiers and cronies ;is slowly and discreetly nibbling away at our right to remove that government ;should it become corrupt and tyrannical ;the declaration gives us this duty ; though not to be done lightly ;the federal government is now beginning to encroach ;they are so large now ;they think they cannot be removed and replaced with a new constitutional government ; we must spread the word and be ever vigilant ; long live the republic ; i fear war clouds are gathering ;so let their night vision skills honed in middle east come forth ;and the bright light of truth will fill their eyes